Suicide Girl and her Saboten
by The Bloody Red Queen Of Angst
Summary: "Leaning against a small, unoccupied place along the back wall of the club, I closed my eyes for a moment, feeling the pain in my head start to grow from the music. Drifting along this turbulent storm of noise I tried not to think." From the inspiration of TohruKyoYuki, and her story "Mirror Mirror." Disclaimer: I don't own Fruits Basket, "Mirror Mirror," or Kurumi. *Complete*
1. And Then I Saw Him

**A/N: So...this is yet another first for me. I feel like I am breaking new and exciting ground with this. Let me begin by saying that this concept was completely inspired by my good friend TohruKyoYuki. Because of her incredibly generous and trusting heart, I was graciously allowed to borrow her original character, Kurumi Fujioka, from her amazing Fruits Basket story "Mirror Mirror," for this ground-breaking project. So if you all find yourselves enjoying this little project of mine...even in the least...please go read and review her work.**

 **That being said...this story is a violent collision of the Fruits Basket world of "Mirror Mirror" and the original story I have been working on for a long time now, called "Hard Candy," which you can find on Wattpad. Though I don't entirely think you will need to be familiar with "Hard Candy" to enjoy this story, it would humble me if you all stopped by on Wattpad. Even if it's just to say 'hello' to me as Lady Angst.**

 **So without further ado...and with few author's notes to come, please enjoy this epic colliding of worlds!**

* * *

Quickly flashing my fake I.D., I stepped into the club and was immediately grateful for the overwhelming noise. The music was far too loud to enjoy and listen to. But...then again...no one here was really listening to this trash anyway. I saw them all in dark corners. Drinking. Talking. _Not_ talking...

Groping each other. Lips forced together under the lie of love and affection in between being parted for more alcohol. I watched them all with a small twinge of sadness and self-loathing. These were my people. After my brother's death I found myself desperately searching for a place to belong. Some firm ground to stand on. A new family, perhaps. And...for better or for worse...this is where my travels had brought me. To these places filled with noise and distraction...and people I didn't even know. But...they were my people.

...this was where I belonged.

This was home.

I let the music and atmosphere slam into my body for a moment, enjoying the level of pain it brought as it washed over me. Leaning against a small, unoccupied place along the back wall of the club, I closed my eyes for a moment, feeling the pain in my head start to grow from the music. Drifting along this turbulent storm of noise I tried not to think.

To think about what had brought me to this place...again. Because it was always the same stupid things. But always something new. Some new excuse to run away from my life.

This time? My parents were getting a divorce because my dad was a complete asshole. And it was all so _stupid_ because I had actually thought that they were in love. That he loved her. That my dad, at least, was a decent man. Someone I might have actually looked up to as an example for how guys should treat me. All of the lovey dovey stuff he would do for Mom. The looks he would give her whenever she wasn't looking.

All lies.

The very last thing I had been able to hold on to...and I had found out that even _that_ was a lie. He never loved Mom. Never loved me. But he was too much of a coward to actually do the right thing and leave before it was too late. Before Mom had been completely destroyed. Ruined by the idea that she wasn't good enough. Oh sure...Mom said it was dad's fault for cheating. That he was the one with the problem...not her.

Another lie.

My whole life was just one big damn lie.

There was no such thing as love. No such thing as honesty and trust.

Feeling a small tear trail along my cheek I quickly brushed it away. There wasn't any use in crying. Not over this. Not tonight. Tonight I would do exactly like I always did. I would run. I would escape. I would hide here with my people. My new family. Strangers that would help me forget about my real one.

"Kurumi!" The voice of my friend practically screamed at me over the music, grabbing my attention as I plastered on a fake smile...another lie.

"Hey, Empress Michiko!" I gave my friend a ridiculous mock salute, my own voice coming loud and boisterous in its chipper greeting as I watched my friend wrinkle her nose at my pet name for her.

"You know I hate it when you call me that, Kurumi." She grumbled at the unfortunate circumstance of sharing the namesake with one Empress Shōda Michiko, a gift from her High School History Teacher mom.

"Yeah." I chuckled helplessly at her discontent as she gave me another little scowl before her features smoothed over into a giggle of her own.

"So no Yuki-kun tonight? I thought you and the prince were back together!" Michiko nudged me playfully, finally handing me the drink in her hand that I accepted gratefully as I took a long desperate sip of the hard liquor concoction.

I loved Michiko like a sister because she always knew exactly what I needed. But taking another large sip of my drink, I had to concede that she had terrible timing in conversation.

"It's...complicated." I murmured just above the noise as my lips found the glass once more, desperate to take this poison into my body so I could forget.

Forget about my scumbag cheater of a father.

Forget about my broken mother.

Forget about my dead brother.

And...forget about him. My 'prince.'

I didn't want to think about _any_ of them.

I didn't want to think. So I began to drink.

 _'That's right, Kurumi...'_ The voice in my head mocked me bitterly _._ _'Don't think, just drink. Great plan. That always fixes_ _ **everything**_ _.'_

"Well, whatever's going on with you two, I bet you're making him completely jealous going out in that outfit!" Mitchiko giggled approvingly at my attire as I found myself pulled from my thoughts. "You look great!" And I gave a small smile to my friend.

"Thanks, Mi-chan." I murmured affectionately through the incessant noise of the club.

My kaleidoscope gaze drifted to the floor to contemplate my choice of outfit. I remembered that I had thrown up my thick, long, unruly blue tresses into the messiest, loosest bun I could manage without the whole thing falling apart. Just like myself, I supposed. I'd donned a lacy, black crop top with an alluring zipper in the front. A basic black mini skirt with lacy frills...short but not too short. And tasteful black flats. Finally gazing at my fingertips clutching to my glass, taking in the chipped black nail polish along my fingernails, I realized that I probably looked very much like a sexy goth. Great... Way to match my outsides with how I was feeling on the inside.

Having fallen into a comfortable silence with my friend as we lingered along the wall of the club, I began to scan the the darkened area. Feeling the warmth of the alcohol bloom and blossom in my empty abdomen, I began to feel another type of hunger. A hole...really. One that I had never really figured out how to fill. Not properly, anyway. I'd only managed to find a quick fix for this emptiness inside of me.

...a quick fix...

And that's when I laid my eyes on him...


	2. My Possible Demise

The man was absolutely beautiful. Not in the conventional sense of beauty...but lovely to look at none the less. His lean, lanky frame hunched itself along the bar where he had perched himself, sitting on one of the stools. A broad shoulder-line indicated he had grown past adolescences as his back narrowed to a thin waist. Though I found that the hooded zip-up he wore seemed to give him a younger appearance. Early twenties, maybe? Though that had never really mattered to me... I liked older guys. They always seemed to have a little more world experience. And the way this man handled the tall drink next to him, I guessed he had a lot of experience. He looked the worldly type.

But what really drew me to him was the hair. The man had excellent hair. From what I could seen in the lower level of light in the club it was inky black and almost shaved on one side, the other side having grown out to veil his face with dark electric blue bangs. American Punk... I had seen the style in adds and shows on T.V., but the trend had never seemed to catch fire here so I had never seen it in person.

And I absolutely loved it.

Continuing to watch him from afar, I let the hunger inside of me grow with the warmth of the alcohol I was consuming. My body needed the liquor...and it wanted him. I felt myself longing for old habits of false comfort. A comfort without the responsibility of attachment.

Because I knew what I really wanted didn't exist. Love was the greatest and most painful lie. A truth taught to me one too many times for my liking. So...I settled for this.

...comfort... Familiarity in the unfamiliar arms of a stranger. Because I couldn't have who I really wanted. I could never have him.

As I watched the man at the bar, I tried to gauge his personality. Get a feel for him, so to speak. Was he social? Was he already with someone? Were they here with him? And as my gaze stayed trained on his back I began to notice that, other than the bar tender who he held but a brief conversation with, this man didn't take notice of any of the women in the club. Some of them seeming just as interested as I was in his presence.

...maybe he wasn't interested in women...

This thought put a slight damper on my plans. But...as I continued my silent interrogation of his...inclinations...I noticed that he wasn't taking notice of any of the men in the club either. In fact, he almost seemed to exude a dark aura that was so completely tangible and palatable that it kept everyone around him at arms length. No one came to sit with him. No one.

...maybe my chances were looking up...

Just as I finished the last of my drink, feeling my body cry out for the next, I watched him ever so subtlety pull up the hood of his jacket. Almost as if warding off my hungry gaze. But he hadn't even looked at me, much less anyone else, so I seriously doubted that he had noticed me watching him. Pushing myself off of the wall I gained the attention of my friend as her gaze finally drifted to me.

"Going for a refill?" Mitchiko asked, a small smile on her face.

"You know it." I smiled back at her. "That...and I think I just found myself a date."

"Aw, but I thought I was your date for tonight." Mitchiko whined as she pouted playfully, her dink having clearly moved to her head.

"You know I love you Mi-chan." I giggled, taking in her adorable expression as I continued. "But I just spied someone a little more to my taste." And I watched her gaze follow mine to the man at the bar.

"Are you serious...?" Mitchiko whispered above the noise, her expression having grown serious.

Mitchiko was the last person in the world to judge my lifestyle and the company I chose to keep. Not like Grandma Judge-A-Lot. So I could tell that she was genuinely worried when she saw who I was planning to spend the rest of the evening with.

"Kurumi..." Mitchiko hissed at me through the blaring music filling the club. "That guy looks like he's about ready to kill everyone here." And I honestly found that I couldn't really argue with her...but like everything else that was bad for me, my body was magnetically drawn to him.

"Yeah, probably. I'll go find out." I smiled at her and winked before making my way to the bar. "If you find my corpse in the back ally make sure to say something nice about me at my funeral!" I called happily over my shoulder with a wave of my hand as I heard her call back to me.

"Not funny, Kurumi!" Mitchiko's voice rose above the noise to meet my ears. "Just be careful!" And with that I went to go meet my possible demise head on.


	3. Saboten, The Cactus Man

Making my way to the bar I took in the various glances of jealousy from the other women eyeing this man before I perched myself confidently on the stool next to him, my body angled towards his as I got a better look at him. And even behind his hoody I could see he was even more attractive close up. What I could see of his face was pale and lean. Angular and harsh to match his aura. And cheekbones so high and sharp that a girl could cut herself slapping them.

...the thought was strangely tantalizing...

"You really need to stop screwing me with your eyes." This low hiss came so angry and bitter that it took me off guard in a moment of complete embarrassment.

...so he knew I had been watching him this whole time...

Sitting for only a moment with the embarrassment that I had actually been that obvious, I recovered and bounced back with a snide comment of my own. He wasn't going to get rid of me that easily.

"Well, if you weren't so damn pretty...so really, it's all your fault." I spoke confidently, though my own English lacked the more natural flow that he possessed.

"Otebis', shluha vokzal'naja." The man's tongue harshly slipped into a language I didn't understand as my brows furrowed.

"Excuse me?" I quipped, more than a little perplexed by his words.

"Said I'm not interested." I heard him mutter from behind the veil of his hoody as his slender black painted fingertips wrapped around his drink, and my own fingers unintentionally wrapped around his wrist to get his attention as I murmured.

"How do you know that you're not interested? You don't even know why I came over here." I murmured as seductively as I could through the feelings of agitation at not knowing exactly what he had just said to me.

In that moment I saw his lean frame stiffen infinitesimally in response to my physical contact before his face ever so slowly turned towards me. And my kaleidoscope gaze met the most beautifully intense deep chocolate brown eyes I had ever seen as they bordered on oily black. It almost looked as if the fine lines and remnants of something like black eye-liner lingered along his thick lashes, giving his dark gaze an even more dark and attractively foreboding feeling as he stared me down. And in the low light I saw how beautiful his face really was. Thin, perfect lips and a long slender nose that sported a rebellious ring as nostrils flared with suppressed emotions I couldn't quite read on his blank face. And I watched as his gaze drifted towards the fingers I had gently wrapped around his wrist before they flitted back to me...roaming over my body as they finally burrowed aggressively back into my own eyes.

"I'm _really_ not interested." He repeated these words darkly, emphasizing them as he gently removed my fingers from the wrist I had claimed to move the glass towards his perfect lips.

"Well then, I'll just sit here until you become interested." I retorted, my voice forcefully chipper as I turned away from him and settled in to play the waiting game.

"Suit yourself." I heard him mutter, and took this small helpless acceptance of my presence as the first line of victory.

"Hey bartender!" My voice rose above all of the noise to gain the man's attention. "Can I get a Vod-Bomb?" I placed my order for vodka and Red Bull as the tender nodded without hesitation due to the establishment's rule on carding everyone who entered the club, and I could have sworn that I heard a snort of disapproval over my choice of drink.

"What?" I swiveled in my stool to eye the man I was sitting next to.

"Nothing." I heard him mutter lowly before taking another sip of dark brown liquid.

"You don't like my choice of drink?" I questioned in mild irritation. "Is that it?" My voice raised above the noise as I practically spat this question before continuing. "Well what are _you_ drinking, hm?" I asked accusingly, turning the tables on my would-be date.

"Coke." I heard him deadpan behind the protection of his hoody as I gave a snort of my own.

"Yeah?" I quipped sarcastically. "Coke mixed with what, smart-ass?"

"Vodka." He deadpanned again, and I felt my cheeks puff in irritation before I let out an exasperated sigh.

"So what do you have against my drink?" I asked, noting that we had chosen the same hard liquor.

"Red Bull tastes like shit." The man practically spat this insult towards my favorite energy drink. "It ruins the vodka." And I found myself falling silent.

...I wasn't sure if it would work between us if the man hated Red Bull...

"So..." I murmured above the music to break the awkward stall in this increasingly strange conversation with this even stranger...stranger. "You have a name over there, Mr. Red Bull Hater?" I called over to him as he continued to ignore me for the company of his drink. "I'm Fujioka Kurumi."

"And I'm still not interested." I heard the man deadpan in disinterested monotone to my introduction as he continued to show more interest in his glass than the environment around him, and another sigh of exasperation pushed its way through my body.

 _'Fine...'_ The voice in my head hissed in seething agitation fueled by alcohol and hate-fire for this man's complete apathy towards my advances _._ _'...you insist on continuing to act like a smart-ass... Well, buddy...two can play this game.'_

"That's a _really_ unfortunate name, there, Mr. 'Still Not Interested.'" I quipped sarcastically towards my would-be date as I stood my ground in the face of this frustrating challenge he presented. "You know..." I continued my rant fueled by agitation and the heat of the Vod-Bomn as I took another hard sip of my drink before continuing, an edge entering my voice. "You're kind of prickly...aren't you." My words came loud and slow, emphasizing each one to make sure he was actually listening to me. "You're just a big...giant...prick." A snort of bitter amusement pushed its way through my body as I gave another hard swallow of my drink. "...kind of like a big...fat...prickly cactus." I gave a helpless giggle at this thought as an idea formed in my mind. "That's it!" I declared happily. "You...are a big fat prickly cactus! _That's_ what I'll call you!" I laughed again, beginning to actually enjoy myself in his presence as I felt the alcohol move through me and loosen my lips. "Saboten!" The Japanese name for the unsavory plant burst through as I smiled at the new name I had just given this man.

I finally turned towards the man sitting next to me only to notice that he still wasn't listening to me. And...in fact...he had actually gone and ordered himself another drink while I had been on my little rant. As the straw lingered in waiting to be taken in by his perfect lips, I found myself biting down on my own. A bad habit, I know, but I couldn't help myself as my lower lip became consumed. One of many bad habits I had picked up in my aimless search for stability in this downward spiral I had been thrown into. And once again I felt my body long for my prickly little saboten, envying the straw as it was finally allowed entrance through his parted lips.

...how my lips and tongue longed to be that straw...

Before my thoughts had a chance to overwhelm and consume me, I heard a familiar song blasted through the speakers of the club, and I found myself overcome with delight. Finally, a song I could actually connect with. As the lyrics washed over me I found myself enveloped in the singers voice as his pain poured over the people of this club in a song I was all too familiar with. I understood his words. Felt them. Knew them intimately. The American band had only recently become popular in my country, and I felt I was among one of the first to jump on the bandwagon of fandom...save for my friend, Haru. The guy made his own punk jewelry and was a bigger metal head than I was. Go figure Haru would find the band first.

I found myself singing along soulfully to the lyrics I knew by heart before another bitter snort of disapproval manifested next to me, halting my words. My kaleidoscope gaze drifted to the man next to me as I saw him take another hard sip of his own drink through the straw between his lips. Unbelievable... Was this guy now insulting one of my favorite bands after having berated my choice of drink? Really?

"What?!" My voice snapped more harshly than I had intended as I glared at the man sitting next to me. "Now you hate Red Bull _and_ this band?"

The prickly personality I could look past. Truth be told I actually found it deeply attractive and nearly impossible to resist. But this man already had two strikes against him if he honestly disliked this song. A third strike against my little saboten and I felt myself obliged to find better...

"Well...what is it now?" I called again, gaining his attention as I swiveled my tiny body towards him from my spot on the stool. "You don't like this band? Or you don't like the song?" I questioned as I watched a dark rich chocolate brown gaze take in the dips and contours of the bar in contemplation.

I watched him sit silently for only a moment before I heard him speak once more over the song. Just one word...

"No."

And it was hard to tell with a wicked poker face like his...but the guy almost sounded a little sad over this. Over something. And I found myself immediately pulled back in to wanting him. Wanting to know him.

"What do you have against them?" I murmured above the song as it finally came to an end of fire and ice.

"Nothing in particular." He admitted as his gaze stayed trained on the counter-top.

"Then what don't you like about them?" I asked, finding myself growing ever more curious over this.

"The front man is an absolute prick." I heard him spit out before he took another long sip of his drink, and I found myself pleased that he wasn't ignoring me anymore.

"What...you actually _know_ the lead singer of this band?" I gave a small snort of disbelief over his claim. "What are you, some sort of musician or something?" I asked.

"Yeah." I heard him murmur cryptically in low concession above the sounds of the club. "Something like that." And I felt the beginnings of a smile twitch along the corners of my lips before they parted for my drink.

So. Saboten was a musician...

* * *

 **A/N: And so enter's MY original character from my Wattpad story "Hard Candy," one Aden McCaffery. A heavy metal singer, song writer, guitarist. And "Otebis', shluha vokzal'naja." is Russian. Google at your own risk.**


	4. Come Run Away And Hide With Me

So...my prickly little saboten was a musician. Probably a bitter, washed up wannabe who had never quite made it. But...I had to admit that this revelation made him all the more appealing in my eyes. I continued to watch him for a moment as his lips played themselves along the straw of his drink before he suddenly shifted his weight on the stool to fish something out of the pocket of his jeans. Having retrieved his cell phone, he quickly placed it to his ear in a one-sided conversation I bared witness to.

"Hey..." I watched as he absentmindedly played with the straw in his half empty drink. "No...I'm not coming back to the hotel tonight." I heard him murmur through the noise of the club to the person on the other end of the line. "Yeah...I'll just meet up with you guys in the morning." A small furrow shaped his features as he listened for a moment before speaking again. "No. Leave it. I'm going to want it later." His furrow seemed to deepen before he spoke again, an edge entering into his voice. "I said leave it." I heard him almost growl. "Because it's mine!" He spat into the phone. "Well, if you want one go buy your own! That one's mine!" And I leaned my torso along the bar, resting my head on the counter as my blue tresses tumbled along its surface, completely enjoying this little domestic spat as a smile played along my lips. "Stop being such a fucking ass and go get your own Pepsi!" I couldn't help the giggle that slipped through my lips at this as I continued to watch this amusing public display of my prickly little saboten before he hung up his phone, no doubt cutting off the person on the other end of the line.

...all that fuss over a Pepsi... Go figure.

"That your girlfriend?" I asked casually, fishing for more information about this man as my head rested against the bar to gaze at him.

"Roommate." I heard him murmur lightly before taking another sip of his drink.

...so...the man wasn't a complete recluse...

As my kaleidoscope gaze drank in my beloved little saboten, I noticed that his own eyes were far off and lost as they gazed into his cell phone. That almost sad expression lightly shaping his features once more. Curiosity overcame me as I saw my opening in the from of his complete distraction. Slipping my tiny frame from the stool I stealthy crept towards my unsuspecting saboten. Pressing and molding my body to his back, I wrapped my arms around his chest and rested my chin against his shoulder in order to steal a glance at what had him so completely captivated. And the slight, almost nervous tensing of this stranger's body in my arms made me think of him...for a moment. Only a moment until I pushed this thought away from me, remembering that he was the only one I couldn't really have. Drawing myself away from this sadness, my eyes took in the low glow of this man's device as I read the text message lingering on the screen of his phone.

 _ _'Hey Aden! I just wanted to let you know that I'm thinking about you and hope everything is going okay over there in Japan.__

 _ _-Kate'__

...so...my little saboten had a name after all... And a girlfriend? This usually wouldn't have factored into my plans for the evening...but...maybe this was the third strike after all.

Maybe he was invested enough in this relationship that my company really didn't appeal to him.

There was only one sure-fire way to find out...

"Who's Kate...?" I murmured next to his ear as I watched the message quickly disappear from the screen of his cell phone. "She you're girlfriend?" And I felt him shift slightly in my arms as he took a breath in, his head hanging imperceptibly before his voice rumbled and vibrated through my torso.

"You smell like cigarettes, sex, and suicide."

These words came so sharp and stinging in their beautifully strange, poetic symmetry that for a moment I hadn't noticed that he avoided my question entirely. And...I supposed it really wasn't any of my business who this Kate was or wasn't to him. So I decided to play along with the change of topic as a smile came to my lips before they formed the snarky comeback in my mind.

"And you smell like a used douche bag." I quipped through a giggle, and felt the small vibrations of what I wondered might have actually been a laugh.

"So what is it that you want, little Suicide Girl...?" I head him murmur this question and almost laughed at the fact that we had just established code names for each other...excellent.

I remained wrapped around him, pondering this strange invitation in the form of a cryptic question...a test, perhaps? A small sigh of consideration pushed through my nose before I finally decided on what I should tell him. The truth.

...go figure...

"All I want is you, my prickly little Saboten." I whispered to him just above the incessant noise of the club before murmuring the same question. "What do you want?" And I remained silent with him as he pondered this for a moment...really thought about it...before responding, his voice distant and far off.

"I think I'd like to disappear completely." He murmured lowly. "That'd be nice."

"For someone that wants to fade away so badly, you know you kind of stand out, right?" I whispered this question as a smile formed along my lips. "But if you're looking to disappear for a little while, they have more private rooms in the back of this club." And I felt another bitter snort move through his body before he responded darkly.

"Still not that interested." I heard him mutter out and I silently cursed him for being so damn difficult.

"That's not what I was planning." I lied...straight through my teeth as I finally released my hold on him to take my place perched in the stool next to him.

"...really..." The stranger muttered lowly as he turned towards me, his dark gaze burrowing into my very soul, moving right through my body as I gave a small involuntary shudder. "And what exactly were you planning...?"

"I know some of the people that work here." I began, my voice confident as I formulated my plan to have my prickly saboten. "Come with me to the back of the club and they'll hook us up with something a little more 'fun' than these drinks." I made this little incitement with the raise of my eyebrow to test the waters.

"Then you can go to the back of the club by yourself." My saboten replied bitterly as he looked away to finish the rest of his drink in one masculine swallow.

...damn...

"Well..." My voice came on the heels of trepidation as my kaleidoscope gaze drifted away from this beautiful stranger. "...they won't actually let me into the back area unattended..." I admitted ruefully. "I kind of need a chaperon." And I'm almost certain that my cheeks blushed several levels of red as I heard a snort of amusement at my expense.

Having finished his drink, the man began to move from his perch on the stool, and in that moment I began to panic. He was leaving. He was getting away and leaving me. And I realized that he was the one. The hole deep inside of me tore so far wide open that I nearly gasped in agony at the thought that he was leaving...because I needed him to feed this lie that I could actually feel whole again.

Was this really so wrong? To want to feel whole...complete...better? Even if it was just another lie, was it so wrong to want it?

...even if only for a moment...

"Wait..." My voice came so broken and dire as I watched his black-tipped fingers place down the money for the drinks. "...please..." The words cracked in my throat, even through I didn't want them to. "Don't go." I begged, feeling something so close to the truth on my lips that it startled me for a moment before I whispered. "Not yet." And I watched as the stranger's hand stilled at the bar for a moment, his hoody veiled head coming to hang for a moment as a small sigh pushed through his body.

"What do you want, little Suicide Girl?" He murmured this question again in his stillness at the bar, the sound of his voice calling to me sending a helpless shudder through my body.

"You said you wanted to disappear, right?" My voice came just above the noise of the club to reach him as I watched him listen. "To just fade away?" I murmured lowly as he finally turned his face towards me, giving me his full attention. "Then...come run away and hide with me, Saboten."


	5. A Game Of Chess, Or Russian Roulette?

__'...then...come run away and hide with me...'__

Gorgeous chocolate eyes moved away from my face to the floor in genuine consideration of this offer. This invitation. I saw that it enticed him, even though he didn't want to admit it and let it show. Watching my little saboten balance along the fence he insisted sitting on, I decided to give him one more little push as a smile crept along the corners of my lips.

"I'll even promise to be on my best behavior." My smile grew, and I couldn't help the small laugh as I watched the man's expression shift in mild disbelief as he once again looked at me. "Honest!" I giggled again to try and convince him, putting my hand up, palm towards him like I had seen in so many American movies in a gesture of sincerity. "Scouts honor!" Not that I actually knew what a scout was...but assumed he did and that this would be enough to ease his mind over my intentions.

"So what do you say..." The wry smile pulled along my lips as we gazed at each other. "You finally interested?" And I watched as the slightest nod of concession indicated that I had finally succeeded in enticing my little saboten in spending his time with me.

"Excellent!" I practically chirped out in jubilation over my victory, hopping off my perch as I gave my date an almost genuine smile. "My friend is so going to hate me over this!" This squeal of delight pushed its way through my body as deep rich chocolate brown eyes rolled themselves at my expense as a snort of sarcasm quickly followed.

"Your friend the jealous type?" He muttered out bitterly at the thought of being pined over as my smile grew.

"Mi-chan?" I giggled my friends name, turning towards her direction to find she hadn't left the hiding space on the wall as she stared at me with that same look of concern on her face, my date's gaze following my own over his shoulder to stare her down. "Not even a little bit." I admitted to my date as I flashed her a confident smile, waving a hand enthusiastically in the air in her direction as she returned a shy wave of her own in response before I leaned towards my date to whisper in a lower voice. "She's actually convinced you look a lot like the Unibomber." And a snort of a laugh forced its way through the man's nose before it was quickly stamped out.

"So..." I smiled back at the man as we turned our attention towards each other once more. "You ready to disappear?"

Laying down some additional currency along the bar counter-top, the man ordered himself another drink in response to my question. As the smaller glass was set along the surface I watched as almost graceful, black-painted fingertips grasped the drink protectively before the man rose from his perch at the bar. And for the first time I was able to see how tall he really was, my own tiny body coming to stand barely to his chest. Just barely. And as he turned his dark gaze down to me, I suddenly felt so very small. A smallness that gave me the slightest twinge of vulnerability as my heart thrummed in my chest...

But I could never have the strong protection of my prince charming. Not _him_. _His_ protection had left me completely alone and defenseless.

Tilting my face up to this tall dark stranger, I had the feeling that he could either be my dark protector...or my greatest downfall.

Did it even really matter...?

Grabbing my own glass from the bar I offered him a smile as I reveled in my irrevocable decision. Either way he had just given himself to me. I had won our little chess game of wits and sarcasm by wearing him down with my persistence. Throwing another confident glance to my friend through the sea of people in the club, I gave her one of my winning smiles and a thumbs up before claiming the hand of my hard-earned prize. And as I tugged the prickly little saboten in tow behind me I was almost certain I watched her mouth not to get murdered.

...famous last words, Mitchiko...

Trailing the dark corridors as the music faded into the background, we finally made our way to the more secluded area at the back of the club. And just as I had expected, the big burly staff gave me the stink-eye of recognition as I gave him an impish grin in retaliation.

"You know you can't be back here, Kurumi..." I heard him rumble out through his barrel chest as he folded his arms menacingly towards our approach.

...honestly...you trash a back room once and you're black-listed for life...

"Actually." My voice came confident as we moved closer to the bouncer. "I can't be back here unless I have someone with me." I corrected the staff, bringing my saboten's captured hand towards me to manipulate his arm across my chest in an awkward embrace of sorts as I felt the warmth of his body mold to my back, feeling the heat of rage pour from his body into my own for dragging him into this. "And guess what..." I giggled as I took in the look on the bouncers face, desperately wishing that I could see the mean mug my saboten was giving him as we waited to pass into the back rooms.

"Fine." The bouncer finally muttered almost angrily. "Anything happens back here and he understands he's liable, right?" He asked, his gaze shifting from me to my date.

"Nothing's going to happen." I quipped in the wake of my date's silence. "I promised him I'd be on my best behavior."

"Uh-huh..." The staff uttered dubiously as he reluctantly allowed us passage into the back area.

Deciding that I had stretched the boundaries of my luck for the moment, I quickly released my date's hand as we shuffled past the disapproving bouncer. As we made out way through the halls and past several closed doors my kaleidoscope gaze met with a figure looming in the shadows. Excellent. Feeling like I owed one to the cactus man for the stunt I had pulled, I discreetly whispered up to him to get his attention as my gaze stayed trained on the shadowy figure.

"Hey Saboten." I murmured lightly with ease in the slightly quieter area. "That's my candy man over there." My voice came low as I indicated the form in the shadows, pointing him out as nonchalantly as I could. "If you tell him you're with me, he'll hook you up with whatever you want." I whispered, making good on my promise to my date.

My eyes stayed trained on the man's back as I watched him carry himself in slowed, lanky strides towards my 'friend' in the shadows. And I found myself biting down on my lip once more in desire. This man's darkness made Haru's black side look like a tame kitty cat. And I imagined that they didn't come any more tall dark and handsome than this... And he was mine. As I watched this dark stranger mingle and consort with my candy man, I began to wonder what it was that my little cactus man might be interested in. It didn't seem to be women. Or men. Or even me, for that matter.

Possibly this mystery Kate of his. But that seemed unlikely as well.

...what was it that got him off...?

He was a drinker, for sure. But was my man into uppers? The heavens knew he could use a good high. And it would be just my kind luck to make friends with an angry crack head.

As shady dealings came to a close with the swift swap of cash for goods, I watched my date walk back to me as a slight twinge of shock washed over me. A small part of me hadn't really expected that. He actually came back. And I realized how much I was actually beginning to enjoy his prickly company. Moving to my side to loom over me with his height, I once again felt that same sense of smallness and vulnerability as we made our way into one of the vacant V.I.P. restricted rooms.


	6. Taking Back The Knight

Shutting the door, we closed off the rest of the world as the noise from the club came barely but a whisper in this space. Though I wasn't one for silence...with the company of my date I welcomed this peaceful reprieve. I gave a small smile as I watched my saboten begin to make himself comfortable as he finally brushed off the hood and undid the zipper to remove his jacket. Taking in the details of his attire I noticed the several thick leather bands around his wrists that had been concealed with his jacket, along with the metallic glint of an edgy razor-blade suspended from a long chain.

Nice...

As my eyes were allowed to roam over his exposed clothing, my smile quickly furrowed to a dubious scowl of disbelief as my kaleidoscope gaze took in the shirt he was wearing. A solid black short sleeved t-shirt with the hard-core edgy insignia of my favorite band on the front. And as he turned his back to me for a moment to set his jacket down on a vacant chair I saw that the shirt was from the band's American "Make Me Bad" tour. The very same band he had claimed to hate...

...unbelievable...

"What the hell, Saboten?" I practically snapped against this hypocrisy. "What's with _that_? I thought you hated that band?"

"No." I heard him murmur as he finally took a seat in the corner of the room by a table that distanced and separated himself from me. "I said the front man was a prick." He corrected me coldly as his voice came dark and low, his gaze avoiding mine. "And you just assumed I hated the band."

 _'Touche, sir...'_ The voice in my head reluctantly conceded in silence to this point before the man's voice lulled to dispel my thoughts.

"Besides...it's not my shirt." He admitted lowly. "It's my roommate's." And I couldn't help but give a small snort of a laugh at this.

"Well, at least they have better taste than you do." I teased playfully as a bitter burst of a snort pushed through the man's nose in disagreement.

"He's an arrogant, egotistical, self-absorbed dumbass." The saboten muttered out these words against his roommate as he continued. "This shirt is just proof of that." And I didn't miss the strange, almost cryptic message this statement held.

"And you're wearing it." I gave another amused laugh at this situation.

"Yeah." He conceded in monotone before falling into silence, his gaze veiled by the shock of electric blue across his eyes.

"That makes you a bit of a hypocrite, now doesn't it..." I giggled out in response.

"No." He murmured coolly. "It makes me a masochist." And I found myself increasingly intrigued by this mystery man of mine.

"You know." I murmured through the sip of my dwindling drink as I contemplated the delicate features of my sullen little saboten. "For some nobody who hates on a famous singer...you kind of look like him." And an almost startlingly unnatural snort of a laugh burst through his body before it was silenced.

"Yeah..." His voice came bitterly sarcastic as he took a hard sip of his own drink through the straw in his glass before his voice grew a little colder. "I get that a lot." Placing the drink on the table in front of him in favor for his cell phone, the man once more became engrossed in the device as he openly ignored my presence.

And again, I took this opportunity to move closer to the man, using his moment of distraction to thieve my saboten's jacket. Donning the hoody, I found my tiny frame drowning in the fabric as I zipped it up and pushed the sleeves up my forearms, throwing up the hood as I drank in his lingering smell before taking a seat on the armrest next to him. The close proximity of my body to his, and my open theft of his hoody seemed to go completely unnoticed as I stared at the screen of his phone. And again...I saw that same benign message from this 'Kate' person. Again...it seemed to have such a pull on him. Causing the faintest flex of sadness in his dark gaze as he continued to stare at it relentlessly. And I didn't quite understand.

"Why does this 'Kate' make you so sad, Saboten?" The words passed helplessly from my lips as I felt him stiffen slightly into awareness of my presence. "She seems to think well enough of you." And I watched the screen of his phone go dark in response to my questioning.

...maybe this fact was a problem for him...

"And you seem to ask a lot of questions you don't need the answers to..." His voice came dark and bitter as he placed the phone next to his drink.

I sat in silence with this cold, harsh accusation before deciding to move back to my corner of the small room. Back to my drink. My hunger. My emptiness.

...this night wasn't going at all like I had planned...

Nursing what was left of my drink, my kaleidoscope gaze took in this man from afar, watching him silently as he tolerated my company for the evening. And...I didn't quite understand that one either. Having possibly claimed a premature victory over my date, all of my hard work and effort to woo him left me with the cold truth that he still wasn't entirely interested in making the most of my company. Yet here I was with him. And I was beginning to get the feeling that this was only because he allowed it...and not through any convincing I had done on my part to entice him.

He was in this room with me because that was what he had wanted...yet he still didn't actually want me. Sitting with this baffling anomaly of a man, my attention was drawn up from my muddled and alcohol-hazed thoughts with his stirring. Without words or concern over my being here, the man produced the fruits of his backroom purchase in the form of an orange prescription bottle.

...so...Saboten was a prescription pill popper... I supposed that made sense. Prescription drugs were often easier to get. And they gathered less attention from the authorities for those who wanted to get loaded without the worry of getting caught with illegal substances. I had never really cared about the consequences myself. And this fact about my raw, rebellious date seemed so very...anticlimactic. And boring. But when I saw the actual prescription...it gave me pause.

Klonopin?

I recognized this for certain, because Mom had been prescribed the anti anxiety medication shortly after my brother had died when she fell into a depression and became so consumed over worrying about absolutely everything. I remembered Mom meeting every day in a wave of fear that somehow I too would suddenly be ripped from her arms. And everyday I remembered seeing the look of relief in her eyes after each morning dose of Klonopin. She always seemed to feel a little better afterward. A little less on edge. And...truth be told...back then I had been tempted more than once to take some of the pills for myself. Simply to see what it would be like to feel 'better'. But...that had been a line I was never willing to cross...no matter how badly I had wanted to. Just thinking about how badly Mom had been hurt with Makoto's death, a stab of guilt tore through my heart at the thought that she was probably in just as much pain right now dealing with the impending divorce.

...and I had left her alone for this...

A man so angry, sad, and tightly bound to a secret I didn't care to know about that he had downed at _least_ three drinks from what I had seen. And now he was apparently planning to chase down some illegally procured anxiety meds. Just to disappear and fade away. And I watched him with a growing level of disinterested fascination as the alcohol in my body began to work against these gloomy thoughts swimming in my head. Making them all the more doleful as this night drew on in a slow crawl. Feeling the need for yet another distraction I fished through my small, warn hand bag for my cigarettes and lighter, taking a long drag as I watched my date's cold gaze flicker to me for only a moment. And I knew that he was please with himself at having pegged me for a smoker.

 _'...big woop...'_ A snort of smoke forced its way from me with this bitter thought. _'A giant gold star for you, buddy.'_ And the quirk of my eyebrow and another sigh of smoke found him moving his attention elsewhere.

Three pills made their way into a waiting palm before I watched him place them on the table. Not in his mouth like I had expected. Instead of immediately washing them down with what was left of his drink, my saboten actually removed the straw from its glass with unhesitating fingertips as it too made its way to the table. My kaleidoscope gaze stayed trailed on these movements made in silence as he seemed so determined towards an end I became less clear about. Biting down on my lip in growing curiosity I watched the man remove the razor-blade dangling from his neck as he used it to quickly dissect the straw into a smaller piece. And all of his ingredients laid out and assembled before him on the table began to resemble my high school chemistry lab that the most hilarious thought flitted through my hazed mind.

...maybe he really was the Unibomber and everyone here was about to die...

A small giggle of smoke at this thought escaped my lips unnoticed by the man busy about his work. My brows furrowed as lips laced around my cigarette when he began to wield the pill bottle as a tool, crushing the Klonopin like he was punishing them for having offended him in some way. Quickly pummeling them into dust chunks, the man traded the pill bottle for his razor-blade necklace once more as his black-tipped fingers gracefully worked the blade through the chunks until the pills had been reduced to a fine powdered dust.

I watched with a strange sense of undefined dread on the heels of anticipation as my date meticulously formed the power into an almost disturbingly impeccable line. With another drag of my cigarette my date's fingertips discarded the razor-blade of his necklace in favor of the straw-bit, and it was only then that my alcohol-muddled mind was able to absorb the more complete picture of this man's intentions for the drug.

Now...I wasn't a novice in poor decision making. Hell, I could probably be crowned the high queen of making really _stupid_ choices. A night with this man a perfect case in point. But I really didn't think he could be _that_ recklessly desperate. The most careless decision I had seen him make all evening was in the moment he had finally decided to accept the invitation of my company. So I knew with out a doubt that he couldn't possibly be thinking about doing what it looked like he was about to do.

...he wasn't nearly that exciting...

A breathless sigh of smoke passed my lips as I watched him. He wasn't really going to do it. He was just bluffing. This was simply a bad joke at my expense. I already knew what he thought of me... I knew it. This was just to make a statement. I watched my date give a single, solitary glance of misgiving towards the cellphone on the table before my world slowed with the sigh from his lips as he leaned himself to the table and violently drew in the line of dust into his nasal cavity through the straw.

...and then it stopped completely.. _._


	7. Check Mate By Claiming The King

My entire world came to a screeching halt with the fact that this man had actually just done a line of Klonopin. I thought I had seen everything in my few short years on Earth before I bared witness to someone snorting anti anxiety meds.

Damn.

Taking a breath in...I tried desperately to steady myself from the aftermath of this moment that had so strangely rocked me to my core. In a disturbing act of desperation, I watched his tongue slowly drag itself along the table to take in the final remnants of powder before the stranger reclined himself back in his seat as large, thick black leather studded combat boots propped up and crossed themselves along the table. And the man folded his arms protectively along his chest, leaning his head along the back of the chair with the flutter of thick dark lashes. My cigarette nearly fell from my lips at how much more attractive he had just made himself in this almost restful slumber before the cold hard truth slapped me right across the face.

...I had just become the unsuspecting babysitter for his high...

A bitter puff of discontent and cigarette smoke pushed through my nose at I stared at my date. The man had made himself the most lovely statue I had ever seen. A beauty that mocked me as it whispered that I wasn't allowed to touch said statue. Pale skin. Contrasted with the darkness of fabric and that fabulous hair of his. All my plans thrown up in smoke and ash like the solitary cigarette that now kept me company. The only sound was another sigh along my lips that was gently disrupted by a small whisper almost lost along the moment.

"Take a picture. It will last longer." The man murmured lightly, lips barely moving in his stillness to form the snarky comment of my wandering eyes, and I simply couldn't help myself in the face of this challenge.

"Okay." I mimicked in a serious deadpan, producing my cellphone to collect his image in the immortality of a photograph as the device made a small mechanical sound of a shutter snap.

The only sound commemorating the very many ways this evening had gone awry before the room fell into silence once more. And I was left to my own thoughts as I watched his chest rise and fall in an even, almost shallow rhythm until I could barely see him move at all. Biting down on my lower lip in a brief moment of consideration, I snuffed out mu cigarette on the palm of my hand before silently raising myself from the spot I had claimed. Quietly making my way to the man, I wondered for a moment if he was even breathing anymore.

Morbid curiosity moved me ever forward as my tiny frame carefully crawled into his waiting lap with a mind completely its own. Curiosity. Alcohol. Desire. All of these things took over and supplanted any level of common sense I should have been using in this moment. Delicately straddling myself on his hips, my hoody concealed face drifted ever closer to his. Until I was almost nose to nose with this man I knew nothing about. A man who had single-handedly made himself dangerously vulnerable to any and all of my advances. And for a single moment I found myself wondering if this was somehow the allure for every single prick I had allowed to take advantage of me.

...this sense of power in the face of vulnerability...

The thought lingered in my inebriated mind like the faint breath that made its way through his slender pierced nose to warm my lips. I was so close. And the walls of his rejection had finally been torn down. This invitation too enticing for me to pass up through guilt as my lips made gentle contact with his own. My very own sleeping beauty. And just like the fanciful child's fairy tale, my beauty's lips came to life in a response that startled me as he began to kiss me back. A response I hadn't at all expected from my prickly, closed off saboten.

And as the kiss grew and fed upon itself, our lips working together in silence and weighted breath, I felt rough calloused fingertips trail along my bare legs up to the hem of my mini skirt. A response I _really_ didn't anticipate as I broke the kiss to gasp for air against his neck, a breathless whisper making its home in my ear.

"You promised you would behave yourself." The voice murmured, warm breath tickling my skin as I gave a small shiver of delight, whispering in kind.

"And you said that you weren't interested." My breath hitched in my throat as my fingertips moved down towards his thick studded belt. "So I guess that makes us both liars." A strong hand captured my wrists, halting my movements and causing me to let out another startled gasp of shock as my eyes locked on to an intensely dark gaze veiled by electric blue.

Before I knew what was happening the hand along my thigh went to support my back-end , pressing my hips to his as he shifted his body to stand from his seat, taking me with him effortlessly. And the feeling of weightless suspension was both exhilarating and terrifying as he held me to him, his other hand still cuffing my wrists tightly as he stalked over to the nearby wall. Raising my hands above my head to pin them above me, I felt his body press my own to the wall in support as his gaze continued to stare me down. His expression was unreadable as his face loomed before me in a timeless moment of silence, giving a long, drawn out sigh of consideration to me before lips moved to my ear once more, the warmth of his breath betraying the coldness of his tone.

"It this what you wanted from me, little Suicide Girl...?" He whispered this in my ear, his hips pressed to mine as my breath came heady under the alcohol I had consumed, my lips trembled out their weak response.

"...yes..."


	8. Epilogue: The Fall Of The Queen

"Is this what you want from me, little Suicide Girl...?" The warm breath of this question lingered along the skin of my neck.

"...yes..." This desperate murmur of concession was followed by a terrified gasp as I felt my weight plummet to the floor, my body falling winded into an undignified mass at this man's feet.

Tears stung my eyes as my mind reeled against the physical pain and shame of this man having let go of me. Dropping me to the floor like trash. Staring at his feet, I didn't want to look up. I didn't want to see him. But I felt him looming over me, leaning against the wall to stare at my body on the floor. I felt his eyes taking me in like bacteria under a microscope. And I didn't dare look up at him. Not even when I heard his voice gently murmur to me in that haunting monotone.

"Are you really _that_ desperate, little girl?" And I couldn't help it as the tears made their way down my cheeks.

...I didn't use to be this way...

I vaguely remembered a time not so long ago where I hadn't been this broken. This desperate and hopeless. But that version of myself was a lifetime removed from the person I was right now. On the floor. Under the weight of this man's biting words and cold eyes. And the whole of it was so much that the tears just continued to fall against my will as a painful sob broke through my lips. Even though I had believed that there was no way I could fall any further. Even though I had believed I couldn't possibly hurt any more than I already did.

...another lie...

As my tears fell and blurred my hazed vision into oblivion, I felt this man move away from me as his lanky frame once again reclined itself in the chair he had claimed for himself. And yet again, that same voice reached my ears, sounding just as tired and broken as I was.

"You should leave."

And these words cause another wave of anguish in my body as I thought over this. Of leaving. Being dismissed. Of having to return to the people of the club feeling like this. Having to go back to my friend and her endless questions. It was too much. Far too much for me to handle as my voice cracked and broke desperately, my head hanging with the weight of the words lingering on my lips.

"Please..." I begged in quiet desperation, hiding my face in the protection of the zip-up I had stolen from him. "Please don't make me go." I whispered, my voice dying into nothingness. "Let me stay."

For the longest time there was no response. For the longest time, I was made to sit in silence. My words lingering in the air around me like a noose. Would he save me? Let me stay? Or would he really push me out the door to hang to death in shame. For the longest time...he left me with nothing until he threw his voice out like a lifeline.

"That depends." He whispered to me, and for the first time I dared to raise my face to gaze upon him, his expression placid and at peace as he looked at me in contemplation. "Are you really going to behave yourself around me?" He asked before the strangest makings of what looked like a smirk of a smile played along his lips. "Or am I going to have to drop you on your ass again?" And I felt my body pulled up from the floor with the small, infinitesimal quirk of his eyebrow.

Moving my sore, tired body cautiously towards him now with his complete awareness, I finally stood before him as my eyes trained themselves on my black flats.

"I'll behave." I whispered in the voice of a completely chastised child.

"Good." I heard him murmur lowly, silence falling over the moment before he spoke again. "Well...come on then." And my kaleidoscope gaze lifted in a moment of confusion to meet his face.

His body held the same laxed position, reclining in the chair, and for a moment I didn't understand what he wanted. What he meant. But with the more obvious raise of his brow through veiled electric blue bangs it donned on me that he was offering me an invitation. Extending his permission for close contact as I questioned him silently with my eyes. My expression betraying my hesitation before I moved a little closer to him. Slowly crawling back into his lap, there was nothing stopping me this time. Not even him. And...I found that having actually been invited felt so much more exhilarating than I had expected. Not the exhilaration and high I had felt from preying on his vulnerability...but...one that left me feeling lighter than I had in a very long time.

I couldn't remember the last time I had felt this good.

Resting my head along the forearms that crossed his chest to create a barrier, I could hear the faint beat of his heart. Slow. Quiet. Steady. And it was one of the sweetest lullabies I had ever heard. Like the ones that my mom would sing to me. Simply beautiful. As my tiny frame rested comfortably curled in on itself against his torso, slipping into helpless sleep to the rhythm of his heart, I found myself whispering to him against his chest.

"So who are you...? Really...?" My lips moved on their own in exhaustion, pushing against the alcohol and weight of this evening as I felt a small chuckle move through his body.

"Don't you know who I am, Suicide Girl?" He whispered back in response as my lips twitched in a small smile to my given name. "I'm the voice that sings you to sleep at night." This soft murmur came lithe in pending sleep. "I'm the rock star that you fantasize about in your daydreams, little girl. And I warned you that I was an absolute prick." This bold statement caused a helplessly drunken giggle fit to move through my body at the complete absurdity of this man's claim.

...there was no way in hell that my saboten was a famous rock star...

"I like you a lot, Saboten." I murmured sleepily into his chest as my giggles died down. "And I think you're cool and all..." I whispered, feeling myself loosing the battle to stay awake in the peace of this moment. "...but you're not really _that_ cool..."

 **THE END**

* * *

 **A/N: I so very sincerely hope that you all have enjoyed this colliding of worlds. Again, if you enjoyed this at all, PLEASE go over to TohruKyoYuki to read and review their story "Mirror Mirror," and then enjoy their new story "Incognito."**


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